Anna Karenina eBook

Never had the impossibility of his position in the
world’s eyes, and his wife’s hatred of
him, and altogether the might of that mysterious brutal
force that guided his life against his spiritual inclinations,
and exacted conformity with its decrees and change
in his attitude to his wife, been presented to him
with such distinctness as that day. He saw clearly
that all the world and his wife expected of him something,
but what exactly, he could not make out. He
felt that this was rousing in his soul a feeling of
anger destructive of his peace of mind and of all
the good of his achievement. He believed that
for Anna herself it would be better to break off all
relations with Vronsky; but if they all thought this
out of the question, he was even ready to allow these
relations to be renewed, so long as the children were
not disgraced, and he was not deprived of them nor
forced to change his position. Bad as this might
be, it was anyway better than a rupture, which would
put her in a hopeless and shameful position, and deprive
him of everything he cared for. But he felt
helpless; he knew beforehand that every one was against
him, and that he would not be allowed to do what seemed
to him now so natural and right, but would be forced
to do what was wrong, though it seemed the proper
thing to them.

Chapter 21

Before Betsy had time to walk out of the drawing-room,
she was met in the doorway by Stepan Arkadyevitch,
who had just come from Yeliseev’s, where a consignment
of fresh oysters had been received.

“Ah! princess! what a delightful meeting!”
he began. “I’ve been to see you.”

“A meeting for one minute, for I’m going,”
said Betsy, smiling and putting on her glove.

“Don’t put on your glove yet, princess;
let me kiss your hand. There’s nothing
I’m so thankful to the revival of the old fashions
for as the kissing the hand.” He kissed
Betsy’s hand. “When shall we see
each other?”

“You don’t deserve it,” answered
Betsy, smiling.

“Oh, yes, I deserve a great deal, for I’ve
become a most serious person. I don’t
only manage my own affairs, but other people’s
too,” he said, with a significant expression.

“Oh, I’m so glad!” answered Betsy,
at once understanding that he was speaking of Anna.
And going back into the drawing room, they stood
in a corner. “He’s killing her,”
said Betsy in a whisper full of meaning. “It’s
impossible, impossible...”

“I’m so glad you think so,” said
Stepan Arkadyevitch, shaking his head with a serious
and sympathetically distressed expression, “that’s
what I’ve come to Petersburg for.”

“The whole town’s talking of it,”
she said. “It’s an impossible position.
She pines and pines away. He doesn’t understand
that she’s one of those women who can’t
trifle with their feelings. One of two things:
either let him take her away, act with energy, or
give her a divorce. This is stifling her.”